Ukraine rebels release two US aid workers

Aid workers accused by rebels of being CIA agent and "enlisted" have been released after being held for 10 days.

09 May 2015 17:32 GMT

Zakharchenko, shown celebrating a Victory Day event, said one of the workers was a CIA agent and the other was "enlisted" [EPA]

Ukraine's separatists have released two American aid workers they detained for alleged spying, their leader says.

"We have freed two Americans that we arrested earlier. One of the two is a CIA agent, the other was enlisted," Alexander Zakharchenko told journalists on Saturday, without giving further details.

The two men are believed to have been working for the International Rescue Committee (IRC) NGO in east Ukraine.

IRC head David Miliband released a statement saying that two of the organisation's workers who had been detained by the rebels some 10 days ago were now in a safe location, the BBC reported.

"The two remaining staff members were let go Friday, May 8th. By all accounts, they are healthy, out of harm's way and eager to return to their loved ones," the former British foreign minister said in the statement.

The IRC said 37 of its workers were detained after separatists raided their offices in Donetsk on April 29.Of those held 30 were local hires while seven were from outside Ukraine.

Five of the detained foreign staff were immediately expelled, while the other two were held in captivity for more than a week.

Listening devices

"Every day, the world's humanitarian workers show great courage, taking risks to help the most vulnerable in crisis situations. They should never be targeted," Miliband said in the statement.

The IRC has now suspended its work in Ukraine, he said.

At the time of the raid, rebel commanders said that they had discovered listening devices in the organisation's office.

"This is the first diplomatic scandal for our republic. All the devices were seized and handed over to the American authorities," Zakharchenko said.

A spokesman for the US embassy in Kiev told the AFP news agency that they did not have any information on the release of the Americans.

The IRC said that its operations were aimed at supplying "food, medicine and psychosocial support" to thousands of Ukrainians.

More than 6,200 people have been killed since fighting broke out between the government of Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists just over a year ago.